SCOTLAND must act to address low prod-uctivity, a poor business birth rate and its lack of success with scale-ups, according to a group of business leaders. The group of more than two dozen – including Andrew Wilson, who chaired the Sustainable Growth Commission and Scottish Chambers of Commerce chief executive Liz Cameron – were responding in an open letter to Sir Tom Hunter’s Raising Scotland’s Economic Growth Rate report. That said Scotland’s GDP was being hit by the failures, and it was not realistic “to think that the current economic policies of either the UK or Scottish governments will produce a transformation of Scotland’s economic performance”.
Richard Murphy: Where Hunter Foundation report spectacularly misses the point thenational.scot - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thenational.scot Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
POLITICAL economist Professor Richard Murphy is joining the National Extra team to deliver exclusive online-only analysis weekly. Murphy, who is a professor of practice in international political economy and a taxation campaigner, has written extensively about what independence would mean for Scotland’s finances. His work debunking the GERS figures and deficit myths has been widely shared over the years, while his popular Tax Research blog often takes apart Unionist arguments on economics. From next week subscribers will be able to enjoy exclusive work from Murphy every week. He is keen to write on Scotland’s renewables future and what independence means for taxes, among several other topics.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers? We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions. What should we do with our second vote in 2021? What happens if Westminster says no to indyref2? Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversation, register under fake names, and post vile abuse. We’ve had hundreds of emails from you complaining about this, asking us to take steps to ensure that these people aren’t given a platform on our site.
The National welcomes flurry of new subscribers as election campaigns kick off thenational.scot - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thenational.scot Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.